July 23, 2007
Day 663
The fortress outside of Ollantaytambo.
I decided on a change of venue for a few days. Last time I was in the area, I briefly went to the Sacred Valley of the Incas on my way to the Inca Trail, but I wanted to see it more thoroughly this time around. I took a bus to Ollantaytambo, a small town with hundreds of hour groups visiting every day. It was more laid-back than Cusco, but so small that I had already seen it all shortly after arriving.
For me, the main attraction in Ollantaytambo was the Inca fortress just outside of town. I walked to the entrance, but learned that I would have to buy a tourism ticket, at a cost of $22, just to enter. Ah yes, I remember the good old tourism ticket. The government claims that you only have to buy one ticket to see all the attractions around Cusco, but then you learn that if you want to visit any of the best museums, churches, or ruins in the area, they're not even included in the ticket. What is included in the ticket? A couple museums the size of living rooms, one or two churches that you can enter for free anyway, and some of the crappier ruins, most of which don't even have anyone checking for tickets at the entrance. It's a big rip off. I bought the stupid ticket last time and was hugely disappointed. This time I decided to give it a miss and took a few pictures of the fortress from afar.
The photo album for this entry is here.
